NORFOLK, Va. — The Norfolk State volleyball team hosts a pair of MEAC matches on consecutive nights in Gill Gymnasium this week, welcoming N.C. Central on Thursday, Oct. 8, and South Carolina State on Friday, Oct. 9. Both matches begin at 6 p.m. and stream on the MEAC Network.
Thursday's match is Norfolk State's annual Pink Out for breast cancer awareness, with special guests from the Kay Yow Cancer Fund on hand as part of the fund's EmPOWERment Tour.
MATCH INFORMATION
Vs. N.C. Central | Thursday, Oct. 8 | 6 p.m. | Gill Gymnasium | WATCH | STATS — Play4Kay / Pink Out
Vs. South Carolina State | Friday, Oct. 9 | 6 p.m. | Gill Gymnasium | WATCH | STATS
Fans can purchase tickets through the Norfolk State athletics ticket office and follow the action through live stats on the Norfolk State athletics website.
PLAY4KAY IN GILL
Thursday's Pink Out carries particular meaning inside the Norfolk State program. Head coach Kathy Bullock is a breast cancer survivor, and the Spartans will wear pink in support of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, which raises money for cancer research and for women fighting all forms of the disease.
GILBERT NAMED MEAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Gabrielle Gilbert was named MEAC Volleyball Player of the Week on Oct. 5 after averaging 4.91 kills and 5.73 points per set over three matches. The senior totaled 54 kills on 121 swings with 13 errors, a .339 clip, and added 33 digs, six aces and four blocks across 11 sets.
Her best outing came against Maryland Eastern Shore on Oct. 2, when she hammered 21 kills on 40 attempts with five errors for a .400 percentage, adding 12 digs, four aces and three blocks in a 3-1 win. She opened the week with 16 kills and 13 digs in a 3-1 victory at Hampton and closed with 17 kills at Delaware State.
ABOUT THE SPARTANS
Norfolk State is 5-12 overall and 1-3 in MEAC play after splitting last week, beating Maryland Eastern Shore 3-1 in Gill Gymnasium on Oct. 2 before falling in three at Delaware State on Oct. 4. The win over the Hawks was the Spartans' first in that series since 2024 and produced a season-best .319 hitting percentage.
Gilbert leads Norfolk State with 233 kills (3.70 per set) and 276.5 points (4.39 per set) while hitting .222. Kyleigh Moore ranks second with 146 kills and 174.5 points, followed by Isis Castille with 69, Ava Berry with 51 and Catori Crawford with 49.
Reagan Chisholm leads the team at .354 with 46 kills and has become a fixture at the net, posting 36.0 blocks. Berry paces the Spartans with 59.0 blocks. Norfolk State ranks 67th nationally and third in the MEAC with 134.0 total blocks, averaging 2.13 per set to its opponents' 1.70.
Jasmine Mataira directs the offense with 306 assists (4.86 per set). Jazeli Vandenburgh leads the defense with 229 digs (3.69 per set), the second-most in the conference.
SECOND IN THE NATION AT THE SERVICE LINE
Norfolk State ranks second in Division I in both service aces per set (2.41) and total aces (152), trailing only UNC Asheville in each. Both marks lead the MEAC.
Vandenburgh leads the Spartans with 34 aces, tied for the conference lead and ninth-most in the country. Gilbert follows with 33, 13th nationally, while Mataira has 24 and Briana Ellis has 21. By aces per set, Vandenburgh ranks 25th nationally at 0.55, Gilbert 32nd at 0.52 and Ellis 64th at 0.46.
ABOUT THE EAGLES
N.C. Central enters at 4-11 overall and 2-2 in MEAC play after a split last week, beating Morgan State in five on Oct. 2 before falling to Coppin State in four on Oct. 4. The Eagles also own a five-set win at Maryland Eastern Shore on Sept. 27.
Talia Emmen leads N.C. Central with 168 kills (3.36 per set) and has been even better in league play at 4.06 per set, adding 113 digs and 19 aces. Shalyn Bell has 150 kills, a team-high 119 digs and 17 aces, and is averaging 3.65 kills per set in conference matches. Aniah Bass has 106 kills while hitting .238 with 27.0 blocks.
Setter Breylan Fairley runs the offense with 400 assists (7.27 per set) and leads the Eagles with 24 service aces. Allyson Rouse tops N.C. Central at the net with 35.0 blocks while hitting .301, and Morgan Wingo leads all Eagles regulars at .318. The Eagles lead the MEAC in digs per set at 13.45.
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
South Carolina State comes in at 4-15 overall and 0-4 in the MEAC, most recently pushing Morgan State to five sets on Oct. 4 before falling. The Bulldogs opened league play with losses to Maryland Eastern Shore, Delaware State and Coppin State.
Kenna Harris leads South Carolina State with 158 kills, followed by Amani Hawkins with 140 and Ki'ra Wright with 101. Wright also anchors the defense with a team-high 207 digs and 20 aces. Taelyn Graham is the most efficient Bulldog attacker at .249 with 75 kills and leads the team with 39.0 blocks.
Macey McCoy has 268 assists and Arianna James 214 in a split setting role. Libero Jordan Dalland has 193 digs, and Chloe Neal leads the Bulldogs with 21 service aces. South Carolina State leads the MEAC in attack attempts per set at 34.37.
SERIES HISTORY
N.C. Central leads the all-time series with Norfolk State, 22-13. South Carolina State holds a 25-17 edge over the Spartans.
UP NEXT
Norfolk State closes its October home schedule on Thursday, Oct. 15, when the Spartans host Howard in Gill Gymnasium at 6 p.m.
For complete coverage of Norfolk State Athletics, follow the Spartans on social media at @nsuspartans (X/Twitter), /NorfolkStateAthletics (Facebook), @NSUAthletics (Instagram) and @nsuathletics (YouTube), or visit the official home of Norfolk State Athletics at nsuspartans.com.
